FIFA 2018 World Cup qualifiers: Top 10 goalscorers

Enter — Edinson Cavani stepped up in the absence of Luis Suarez

And finally, we have our elite 32 who'd be competing on the Russian soil next year for world football's most prestigious trophy. Countless games and countless goals later, we have arrived at the stage where the internet would be bursting at the seams with think pieces on various aspects (and moments) of the qualifiers being dissected and discussed.

The one you're reading right now is no different, for we'll focus on the scoring aspect of the same. With as many as 2454 goals being scored across six different zones in 872 games, we look at the players who shone the brightest up front for their respective teams; players who scored goals at will and finished atop the scoring charts.

Here are the top 10 of them from the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers:

#10 Edinson Cavani (Uruguay) - 10 goals in 15 matches

Poland v Uruguay: International Friendly — Cavani has been Uruguay's primary source of goals

With Luis Suarez hopping in and out of the team with suspensions and injuries, the scoring burden fell majorly on the strapping shoulders of Edinson Cavani, and suffice to say, the PSG starlet more than just delivered the goods.

In what was a tumultuous qualifying campaign for Uruguay, despite finishing second in the region, the 30-year old was a reliable source of inspiration up front. He came to the rescue when the Celeste were found wanting and helped continue their surge in finishing within the qualification zone that was brought under question at one point in time.

Cavani has been criticized on several occasions in the past for disappearing when his team needed him the most. But this time around, he has managed to shush all the naysayers. It took a while for him to get going, as it wasn't until the third matchday that he first found the back of the net, although Uruguay still finished on the losing end of a 2-1 score in Ecuador.

The going got tough thereafter, but Cavani wasn't to get bogged down by it, and ended up bagging 9 more with some of the more significant contributions including igniting the comeback against Brazil in the 2-2 draw, sealing all three points in the slender 1-0 win over Peru, and putting his side back in the driving seat against Bolivia in the final game.